The soul is present in the heart of the living entity

As soon as one understands the existence of the soul, he can immediately understand the existence of God. The difference between God and the soul is that God is a very great soul, and the living entity is a very small soul; but
qualitatively they are equal. God is all-pervading, and the living entity is localized. But the nature and quality are the same. Undoubtedly the soul is present in the heart of the living entity, and it is the source of all the energies which maintain the body. The energy of the soul is spread all over the body, and this is known as consciousness. Since this consciousness spreads the energy of the soul all over the body, one feels pains and pleasures in every part of the body. The soul is individual, and he transmigrates from one body to another, just as a person transmigrates from boyhood to youth, and then to advanced old age. Death takes place when we change to a new body, just as we change from our old dress to a new dress. This is called transmigration of the soul. Just as gold and other commodities are continually transferred from one place to another through buying and selling, so the living entity, as a result of his karma, wanders throughout the universe, being injected into various bodies in different species of life through the semen of one father after another." Just as the waves of the ocean bring pieces of straw together and then break them apart, the force of eternal time brings living entities together in temporary relationships, such as master and servant, and then breaks them apart and rearranges them.

Featured Video

Syamarani dd speaks about Sri Krishna Lila (the fruit-seller)

THE THOUGHT OF THE DAY

BHAKTI IS THE KEY
Lord Krishna said “I am equal to all living beings and am neither inimical nor
partial to anyone. But as those who approach Me with bhakti are attached to Me,
so too I am bound by affection for them.” Source Bhagavad Gita 9.29.

BE CAREFUL
You are what your deep driving desire is. As your desire is so, so is your will.
As your will is so, so is your deed. As your deed is so, so is your destiny.
Source.. Brihadaranyaka Upanishad

ELEVATING ONES CONSCIOUSNESS
Although our state of mind is seen through the nature of our activities (how we
dress, eat, talk etc.), the type of activities we perform also affects our state
of mind. This means we can elevate our consciousness by elevating the nature of
our activities. All spiritual activities should help us to free our
consciousness from illusion and direct it towards God. A devotee of Krishna
accepts the regulations of spiritual life as ‘regulative principles of freedom’,
as tools for advancing personal character development and to attain a blissful
spiritual consciousness

CONSIDER THIS DEEPLY
Killing animals and eating them, among many other activities, which harm any
living entity in any way, is one of the worst things a person can do to create
negative karma for himself. Our present karmic reactions, happiness and
distress, all have their origin in our present or past life’s positive or
negative, kind or unkind activities. Therefore a sane person should always
consider this deeply before acting, and with great determination and for his own
benefit, remove himself from negative activity. Even if the whole world objects
and is against it, one should reject all that is even remotely associated with
causing harm to life.

WE ARE NOT ONE
The Jiva, the real self, does not become one with God, or indeed anything, even
after he has attained complete Liberation. The soul retains his individuality
under any circumstance. After death or here in this World or hovering on the
ghostly plane, existing in heaven or in the transcendental World. There is no
situation anywhere, in which the soul can be destroyed or loose his eternal
individuality, to think it can, is an illusion.

WE ARE IN FORGETFULNESS
The spirit souls attached to material life, cannot easily comprehend spiritual
attachment, nor can they have any experience of it. In reality, it is the souls
true function and eternal nature. However, we have become engrossed in
attachment to matter which causes us to forget, that we are actually a spiritual
particle of consciousness. This is a miserable condition, although hardly any of
the Souls who are thus entangled in birth old age disease and death, think so.

HE HAS AN ETERNAL FORM
5000 years ago, Lord Krishna spoke about the meaning of life, the subtle
workings of creation, and the understanding of a self- realized soul. He spoke
of the science of yoga in all its forms, the path of work, the path of
knowledge, the path of mysticism, the path of devotion. And at last Lord Krishna
revealed Himself before Arjuna as the source of everything, His eternal form as
the Supreme Lord.

HE IS VERY CLOSE
The Supreme Lord is situated in everyone’s heart, O Arjuna, and is directing the
wanderings of all living entities, who are seated as on a machine, made of the
material energy. Bhagavad Gita 18.61
Dr. Daniel Coleman, associate editor of Psychology Today and author of The
Varieties of Meditative Experiences.

THREE TYPES OF DISCUSSION
In a vada discussion the motive of all concerned is to find out the truth. This
is the ideal kind of discussion. It is for persons who are sober and impartial
about the outcome; they simply want to know what is the truth of the matter.
They are in the mode of goodness.

PraJalpa is a discussion wherein one is not interested in what is said by
others, whether it has some truth or all of the truth, because one simply wants
to be heard. Any other view or contribution is of no interest. This is the way
for a person in the mode of passion.

A vitanda discussion is in the mode of ignorance. In this version the truth
is of no value. One simply wants to win at all costs.

By Srila Jiva Gosvami, Sri-Sat-SandarbhaGOD CONSCIOUSNESS IS EVERYONE’S ORIGINAL CONSCIOUSNESS
Krishna Consciousness is not an artificial transformation. Our original
consciousness is God consciousness, but now our consciousness is covered with so
many identifications, situations and problems. Our consciousness is like water.
Water is by nature clear and transparent, but sometimes it becomes muddy. If you
filter all the mud out of the water, it again comes to its original clear,
transparent state. This is the result of Krishna meditation.WHAT GOES ROUND…COMES AROUND
You are what your deep driving desire is, as your desire is so, so is your will,
as your will is so, so is your deed, as your deed is so, so is your destiny.
“Isopanishads”SPECULATIVE PHILOSOPHERS
Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada said: Neither the scientists nor
speculative philosophers have yet arrived at any conclusion concerning the
cosmic situation. All they have done is posit different theories about it. Some
of them say that the material world is real, others say that it is a dream, and
yet others say that it is ever existing. In this way different views are held by
mundane scholars.LIMITED CONSCIOUSNESS AND UNLIMITED CONSCIOUSNESS
The difference between God and the individual soul is, that the individual
spiritual soul is localized to one place and is situated inside the heart. Our
consciousness is limited to pervade just this one body. But Krishna has Super
Consciousness, He is unlimitedly all knowing. With a small fragment of Himself,
He pervades and maintains entire universes. In this way the theory that the soul
and God are one, is rejected and not acceptable. A person who imagines that he
has become all pervading, thinking himself to be God, is in illusion and
deluding himself.THE ROAD TO BHAKTI
By Srila Bhaktivinodha Thakura
When that suffering becomes excessive, it gives rise to a search for happiness.
From that desire, discrimination arises, and from discrimination, the tendency
for inquiry is born. As a result of this, one attains sat-sanga (the association
of saintly people), where upon sraddha develops. When sraddha is born, the jiva
ascends to a higher stage, namely the path of bhakti.
Exerpt From Bhaktivedanta Narayana Maharajas Translation Of The Book Jaiva
DharmaREAL MEDITATION
By Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Goswami Prabhupada.
At first, remembrance of Krsna may be interrupted at intervals, but later
remembrance proceeds uninterrupted. When remembrance is uninterrupted, it
becomes concentrated and is called meditation. When meditation expands and
becomes constant, it is called anusmrti. By uninterrupted and unceasing anusmrti
one enters the stage of samadhi, or spiritual trance. After smarana-dasa or
samadhi has fully developed, the soul comes to understand his original
constitutional position. At that time he can perfectly and clearly understand
his eternal relationship with Krsna. That is called sampatti-dasa, the
perfection of life.”

ONENESS AND DIFFERENCE
Though we come in various forms and though we are all individual personalities,
we all come from the same source and we are of the same spiritual substance as
Krishna. “Tattva” means reality, principle, and truth. He is beginning less and
we are all also eternal entities, one with Krishna in quality, and different in
quantity, we are simultaneously one with and different from Him, we are eternal
parts and parcels of God.

REALIZING OUR SPIRITUAL IDENTITY
Human life is awarded to the living entity the soul, to realize his spiritual
identity and his permanent source of happiness. The human beings seek happiness
because happiness is our original situation. But he is vainly seeking happiness
in the material atmosphere. We are constitutionally spiritual by nature and
therefore our happiness can be perfectly perceived in Bhakti Yoga

SAMADHI
In the stage of perfection called trance, or samādhi, one’s mind is completely
restrained from material mental activities by practice of bhakti yoga. This
perfection is characterized by one’s ability to see the Self by the pure mind
and to relish and rejoice in the Self.

QUALITIES TO STRIVE FOR
Peacefulness austerity purity tolerance honesty knowledge wisdom and religious
ness.These are the natural qualities by which the Brahmans work.

MATERIAL REALITY
Material life is non-eternal, and hence its impression of being substantive is
an illusion in form of a super-imposition on the eternal spiritual self.
Material knowledge is not real knowledge because it does not inform about real
eternal life and latest at the time of death it is exposed as useless. Material
so-called bliss is not real bliss because it is temporary, and when it ends, it
results in suffering.”

IT’S PERSONAL
The heat and luminosity of the sun’s rays demonstrate to any rational person
that the sun, the source of the rays, is not a dark, cold globe but rather a
reservoir of almost unlimited heat and light. Similarly, the innumerable
instances of personality and personal consciousness within creation are more
than adequate to demonstrate the existence, somewhere, of an unlimited reservoir
of consciousness and personal behavior which is that of Krishna.

NOT MUCH TIME
This human life is very short. Therefore, like the traveler in a guesthouse,
the living entity the spiritual soul, must diligently prepare for spiritual
realization during Its stay in this human body and its limited lifespan. Isn’t
it foolish to waste time trying to improve arrangements at the guesthouse during
one’s short visit, without concern for one’s destination?

A MOST IMPORTANT ANSWER
Who am I?’ This is the first question which arises in the heart of a person
seeking the highest good. If one makes a mistake in assessing one’s true
identity, then one will make errors when it comes to determining the ultimate
goal of life. If one makes an error in determining the ultimate goal of life,
then everything done, every effort made, will simply be wasted.

NOT THIS BODY
The teaching of the spiritual self beyond the material body solves the problems
of racism (which has led to billions of war, slavery and genocide victims),
nationalism, sexism, various psychological and sexual disorders and all other
prejudices and problems arising from bodily identification. The practice of
Bhakti yoga and chanting of Hare Krishna, in the right association, will bring
about proof and direct realization of ones authentic self

SKELETONISM
The big obstacle to human progress is skeletonism or the faith that ‘I am the
material body and reality consists only of what the material body perceives’. In
this way one blocks the path to the deeper truth which is perceivable only to
the spiritual senses and not to the gross senses. The basic human misconception
is that the physical body is the self, which naturally leads to an increasing
crisis of the self.

THE LOVER AND THE BELOVED
The lover, the individual soul, is eternal; the beloved, the Supreme Soul, is
eternal; and the loving relationship, bhakti, is also eternal, it is the
original function of the soul. Thus, this Bhakti yoga re-establishes
consciously, the original loving relationship between the Supreme Soul and the
individual soul. It is our unfortunate predicament, that we have forgotten this
wonderful truth, because we are falsely thinking ourselves to be products of
this material plane.

AWAKENING OF THE HEART
As the sun begins to rise, even before it is visible it dissipates the darkness
of night. With the first glimpse of sunlight, fear of thieves, ghosts, and
demons immediately disappears, and when the sun is actually visible, everything
is manifest and everyone begins performing his religious activities and
regulative duties. Similarly, the first hint that offense less chanting of the
Lord’s holy name has awakened dissipates the reactions of sinful life
immediately.

A GRADUAL PROCESS
The gradual process of elevation for self-realization is meant for those who
have realized, that there must be an Absolute Truth. After repeated birth and
deaths on this path, which is known as deva-yāna, one attains these consecutive
stages. Finally one becomes completely situated in ones blissful self, and need
not traverse the path of repeated birth and death anymore

MY LORD IS A PERSON
Although He is non-dual, infallible, beginningless, possessed of unlimited forms
and the oldest of all, nevertheless, He is a beautiful person with everlasting,
fresh youthfulness. Although He is incomprehensible through study of the Vedas,
He is easily attained by spontaneous devotion of the soul (shuddha-prema) I
worship that original personality, Shri Govinda, Krishna

OUR INNERMOST HANKERING
The innermost hankering of every soul is for Beauty, Love, Affection and
Harmony; Not for knowledge, power belongings or anything else. Please chant Hare
Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare; Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama
Hare Hare. This maha mantra cleanses the dust from the mirror of the mind and
awakens us to a pure life of loving devotion to the Lord free from all
anxieties.

QUESTION TIME

Someone asked " “When the spirit soul returns to the Spiritual World does he have the same relationship with Krishna as before he came here to the Material World?”"

The following answers are given by several devotees.

1) The conclusion is that no one falls from the spiritual world
or Vaikuntha planet, for it is the eternal abode. (Bhag. 3.16.26, purp.)

2)From authoritative sources it can be discerned that associates of Lord
Visnu who descend from Vaikuntha do not actually fall. They come with the
purpose of fulfilling the desire of the Lord, and their descent to this
material world is comparable to that of the Lord…. it is a fact that no one
falls from Vaikuntha. (Bhag. 7.1.35, purp.)

3)The Spiritual World] contains the highest perfectional stage of living
conditions…It is the unalloyed manifestation of the energy of the Lord,
without illusion as experienced here in the material world. (Bhag. 2.9.10,
purport)

4)In the spiritual world… inhabitants…They're aksara. They do not fall
down. Ksara aksara. We are ksaras. We have fallen down in this material
world. But there are devotees in the spiritual world, in the Vaikunthaloka,
they never come down. Never come down in this material world, but they are
also persons like us, but eternal persons, with full knowledge and life of
blissfulness. That is the difference between them and us. (741105SB.BOM)